BluMetric blames project delays for dip in Q3 revenue

Ottawa-based clean-tech firm BluMetric said Wednesday its third-quarter revenues fell 11 per cent compared with a year earlier, a decline the company blamed on lengthy sales cycles and project delays.

BluMetric (TSX-V: BLM) reported revenues of $7.4 million for the three-month period ending June 30, down from $8.4 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2016. Overall, the firm was still profitable in the quarter, recording a net income of $70,000 – down from $371,000 a year earlier.

The wastewater treatment firm said project and program delays caused revenues from its Professional Services branch to fall $400,000 quarter-over-quarter to $5.2 million. Revenues at its Water Systems division dropped by $600,000 to $2.2 million, a dip the company attributed to the length of the sales cycles for its new engineered solutions projects.

The company’s year-to-date revenues declined five per cent to $22.9 million from $24.2 million through the first three quarters of 2016. Through the first nine months of fiscal 2017, BluMetric posted a net income of $388,000, down from $675,000 in the first three quarters of fiscal 2016. The firm’s gross margin for the quarter also dropped slightly to 19 per cent from 22 per cent a year earlier.

In a statement, BluMetric sounded a positive tone, saying it made “significant progress” in improving its operations, generating new business leads and managing projects during the quarter.

The firm, which earns most of its revenues from within Canada, touted a pair of contract wins in Central America that are expected to bring in a total of more than $1 million, saying the deals demonstrate “the strength and adaptability of our products in a wide range of environments.”

The company also said it is successfully pursuing new business in target sectors such as food, beverage and agriculture, mining and military. In addition, it said it was continuing to develop new ammonia removal systems to serve a global market it has estimated to be worth more than $10 billion.

The third quarter also featured the announcement of a major management shakeup at BluMetric. Longtime CEO Roger Woeller said in early June he would be stepping down from the post, though he remains in the job while the company searches for his successor.

After opening the day up 13.5 per cent from Tuesday’s closing price, BluMetric’s shares were unchanged at 21 cents on the TSX Venture Exchange Wednesday.